Tonight we'll start this 8 day holiday. We light every night a "Chnukia" which is a candlestick with room for 8 candles in a row+one bigger candle which is called the shamash and has a special job. Tonight, at sunset we light one candle +shamash in each Chanukia, and tommrow 2 candles +shamash etc. till we get to 8 +1 candles and that means the holiday is over...While lighting the candles we say 2 blessings and then sing Chanuka songs (like "Maoz Tzur").
There are also special foods-a pancake from potatoes called "leviva" and a doughnut filled with jam called "sufgania". The holiday is to remember 2 things: when the Macabees fought the ancient greeks and won, and also a miracle we had-that the Menora in the temple (which is like the Chanukuia) needs special pure oil to light it and all we had was a little cup, with oil just for 1 day. But the miracle was that it lasted 8 whole days, until they made new oil. So the Sufgania and Leviva are eaten on Chanuka because they're fryed in oil.
Esty Grafstein
Israel
This text can be found in the KIDLINK Multi-Cultural Calendar.